§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Health how he measures the number of mixed-sex wards in NHS trusts; and how many mixed-sex wards there are in(a) each region and (b) England. [86875]
§ Mr. Hutton [holding answer 12 December 2002]The information requested is not available in this format, as the provision of single-sex accommodation is measured on a trust by trust basis and not at individual ward level.
Most hospital wards generally care for both men and women. To provide the required levels of privacy and dignity for patients, wards are split into single sex bays or single rooms, or otherwise configured to provide gender segregation. It is the responsibility of each national health service trust to determine the most appropriate configuration to meet their specific requirements.